Written Answers Wednesday 5 August 2009

Scottish Executive

Digital Technology

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is satisfied with the broadband coverage of the Angus glens area.

Jim Mather: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-26107 on 4 August 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

Economy

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made bids to the £750 million Strategic Investment Fund announced by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and, if so, (a) what bids it has made and (b) whom it consulted when drawing up these bids.

Jim Mather: The Scottish Government has made the following bids to the Strategic Investment Fund announced by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. It consulted a range of private and public sector partners when drawing up these bids.

  Energy-related bids:

  1. Scottish Renewables Infrastructure Programme.

  Developed by Scottish Enterprise/Highlands and Islands Enterprise with Scottish Government policy support. Highly strategic proposal for £44.25 million contribution to £87 million cost of infrastructure development of ports and harbours to enable UK offshore renewables development. Comprises development at the following locations:

  Pentland Firth (Scrabster Harbour).

  Peterhead Renewables Industry Park.

  Peterhead Port.

  Dundee Renewables Port.

  Methil – Fife Energy Park Phase 3.

  2. Glasgow Biofuels Initiative.

  Developed by Glasgow City Council and the University of Strathclyde. £25 million contribution sought to lever in significant private sector funding and additional public funding towards up to £140 million cost of proposal to develop biogas networks, biomass and district heating as first stage of larger "Sustainable Glasgow" project, with strong links to Commonwealth Games infrastructure.

  3. Sigma Low Carbon Enabler Fund.

  Developed by Sigma Capital Group plc (private sector company already investing in low carbon projects) with support from the Scottish Government. Proposal for £25 million contribution towards up to £100 million cost of a new investment fund for small scale renewable electricity and heat projects, levering up to £75 million of private sector investment.

  4. Aberdeen – Peterhead Hydrogen Corridor.

  A proposal from Read Associates, with Scottish Enterprise support, for Phase 1 of a "Hydrogen Corridor" of hydrogen fuelling stations and hydrogen powered vehicles between Aberdeen and Peterhead and which it is planned will extend to Inverness. The bid is for £7.5 million on a project worth £12.5 million anchored by interest from the Royal Mail in converting its fleet to hydrogen fuel, and also supported by FirstGroup and Stagecoach Group. This would be an early mover element of a UK-wide initiative called UK-HyNet, which brings together six parts of the UK to develop a hydrogen economy in the UK.

  Non energy-related bids:

  5. Life Science "supercluster" – Scotland.

  Scottish Enterprise proposal to enhance the already planned life sciences developments in Edinburgh Bio-Quarter with £38 million investment in two further facilities:

  Drug company incubation/grow on facility for new starts (£30 million).

  Centre for Predictive Drug Development (£8 million).

  6. Technology Innovation Centre for Advanced Manufacturing and Energy – Glasgow.

  Developed by Scottish Enterprise with Strathclyde University. £30 million proposal for International Technology and Innovation Centre for Energy and Advanced Manufacturing in new University building in Glasgow City Centre.

  7. Power Networks Demonstration Centre.

  Scottish Enterprise, working with the University of Strathclyde, Scottish Power and Scottish and Southern Energy, propose development of a test centre at a cost of £8 million to support infrastructure development of future power networks. The centre would be part of the University of Strathclyde.

Highlands and Islands

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding was allocated in the Highlands and Islands in each of the last five years to (a) supporting small businesses, (b) the third sector, (c) tourism, (d) innovation and (e) renewable energy and how these figures compare proportionally with the spend across the rest of Scotland.

Jim Mather: The funding for business support, including support for small businesses, across Scotland is an operational matter for Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise. Budget allocations to the two agencies are not disaggregated on a small business basis and the requested data is not centrally held or collated.

  Local authorities, VisitScotland and Highlands and Islands Enterprise also assist small businesses and I would suggest the member contact the relevant organisations to obtain this data.

  Similarly, funding allocations in relation to the third sector, tourism, innovation and renewable energy in the specified area and time frame is not held or collected centrally.

  However, an indicative analysis of renewable energy budget spend in 2008-09 shows estimated proportional spending in the Highlands and Islands as follows:

  Total spending in the Highlands and Islands - £7,756,140.00.

  Total spending in Scotland - £10,656,675.00.

  Percentage spend in the Highlands and Islands - 72.78 per cent.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding has been allocated in the Highlands and Islands to (a) the Small Business Rates Relief Scheme, (b) Skills Development Scotland, (c) Business Gateway, (d) the Campbelltown-Ballycastle ferry, (e) Road Equivalent Tariff, (f) the Scottish Co-investment Fund, (g) the Scottish Venture Fund and (h) the Scottish Seed Fund in (i) 2007-08, (ii) 2008-09 and (iii) 2009-10 and how these figures compare proportionally with spend across the rest of Scotland.

Jim Mather: Details of the data available on various funding allocations in the Highlands and Islands is as follows:

  The Small Business Rates Relief Scheme:

  The Small Business Rate Relief Scheme was replaced in 2008-09 with the Small Business Bonus Scheme (SBBS). The two schemes have a number of key differences and are not directly comparable in terms of costs.

  The level of assistance SBBS provides is more generous and offers business rates relief of up to 100 per cent on business (non-domestic) rates to small businesses, while the former scheme offered relief of up to 50 per cent. Costs of both schemes depend on a range of factors, such as take-up of the scheme and number and nature of business properties.

  

 
2007-081
2008-092
2009-103


Small Business Rates Relief Scheme 
(Cost in £000)
Small Business Bonus Scheme
(Cost in £000)
Small Business Bonus Scheme
(Cost in £000)


Highlands and Islands area
4,410
10,410
14,379


Scotland
24,243
67,864
96,107


Highlands and Islands area as proportion of Scotland 
18%
15%
15%



  Notes:

  1. 2007-08 Non-Domestic Rate Income Audited return.

  2. 2008-09 Non-Domestic Rate Income Mid-Year Estimate return.

  3. 2009-10 Non-Domestic Rate Income Provisional Contributable Amount return.

  Skills Development Scotland (SDS):

  SDS did not exist in 2007-08. Funding for 2008-09 and 2009-10 is as follows:

  

 
2008-09
2009-2010


Highlands and Islands
£15 million
Indicative spend of £14 million, though figure will increase through the financial year and additional funding is distributed across Scotland.


Proportion overall SDS budget
8.3 per cent of budget
£14 million represents 7.4 per cent of budget



  Business Gateway:

  The Business Gateway (BG) did not operate in the Highlands and Islands prior to 1 April 2009. Information on the funding allocations for the local delivery of the BG throughout Scotland is an operational matter for local authorities.

  Campbeltown-Ballycastle Ferry:

  

2007-08
2008-09
2009-10


£100,000
Allocation for this service was contained within the "Support for Ferry Services in Scotland" budget figure of £83.5 million.
Allocation for this service was contained within the "Support for Ferry Services in Scotland" budget figure of £87.7 million.



  Note: No decision has yet been on the introduction of this service.

  Road Equivalent Tariff:

  

2007-08
2008-09
2009-10


No funds allocated
£5 million
£7.5 million



  Note: The figures given above are the allocations as given in the 2007-08 spring Budget Revision of January 2008 and do not necessarily represent sums actually spent.

  Scottish Co-investment Fund, Scottish Venture Fund, Scottish Seed Fund:

  The Scottish Government has not directly allocated funding for the Scottish Co-investment Fund, the Scottish Venture Fund or the Scottish Seed Fund to be spent in the Highlands and Islands area in the period 2007-08 to 2009-10. However, under these schemes, which are administered by Scottish Enterprise, there have been investments in companies based in the Highlands and Islands area. Information on this activity is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise.

  I will write to the chief executive of Scottish Enterprise asking him to provide you with this information.

Highlands and Islands Enterprise

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the budget allocated to Highlands and Islands Enterprise in each year from 2002-03 and 2008-09 was spent in full and, if not, by how much it was underspent in each year.

Jim Mather: The budget allocated to Highlands and Islands Enterprise has been utilised as follows for each year from 2002-03 to 2008-09:

  2002-03: under spent by £0.9 million,

  2003-04: under spent by £2.27 million,

  2004-05: under spent by £5.6 million,

  2005-06: under spent by £0.05 million,

  2006-07: under spent by £0.4 million,

  2007-08: under spent by £0.01 million.

  Audited accounts for 2008-09 are not yet available.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what formal criteria are set for significant and high growth businesses, as referred to in Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s operating plan.

Jim Mather: Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) is responsible for determining which businesses are considered to be significant and/or to have high growth potential. However, I understand that, in doing so, HIE takes a number of factors into account including market opportunity, the sector in which the business operates and significance to the local economy.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many businesses it believes fall into the category of significant and high growth businesses, as referred to in Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s operating plan.

Jim Mather: : This information is not collated or routinely held by the Scottish Government. However, Highlands and Islands Enterprise has advised the Scottish Government that it is currently developing relationships, or has agreed growth plans, with around 250 businesses and 80 social enterprises in the Highlands and Islands area which it believes have growth potential.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of businesses in (a) the Highlands and Islands and (b) Scotland falls into the category of significant and high growth businesses, as referred to in Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s operating plan.

Jim Mather: As at March 2008, there were 282,300 enterprises in Scotland of which 154,635 were registered for VAT or PAYE. Given the size and dynamic nature of the business base and the data requirements for monitoring these businesses, neither the Scottish Government nor Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) estimate the total number of significant and growth companies within the HIE area or in Scotland as a whole, or the proportion that such figures might represent of the total business base.

  However, I am able to confirm from information provided by these bodies that, at the present time, HIE account manages around 330 businesses and social enterprises and that, in the rest of Scotland, Scottish Enterprise (SE) account manages around 2,130 businesses. These figures are, however, dynamic and only reflect those businesses and social enterprises which, at this particular time, HIE and SE have identified as significant, growth or high growth entities; where HIE or SE intervention is needed and can make a difference and where productive relationships have been established. In HIE’s case, it aims to build a total of around 500 account managed businesses and social enterprises towards which it can target intervention and maximise its impact.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many businesses or organisations have applied to Highlands and Islands Enterprise for assistance since its refocus of priorities and how many of these were successful.

Jim Mather: The collection and collation of this information is an operational matter for Highlands and Islands Enterprise.

  I have written to HIE’s Chief Executive, Sandy Cumming, asking him to respond to you directly on this issue.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many businesses that previously received support from Highlands and Islands Enterprise have had their applications for future support rejected.

Jim Mather: The collection and collation of information on businesses applying, successfully or unsuccessfully, to Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) for support is an operational matter for that body.

  I have written to HIE’s Chief Executive, Sandy Cumming, asking him to respond to you directly on this issue.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money has been saved by the refocusing of Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s priorities.

Jim Mather: Highlands and Islands Enterprise has identified savings of £2.3 million for the period 2008-13 as a result of the refocusing of their priorities.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact on the Highlands and Islands economy of the reduction in the budget for Highlands and Islands Enterprise over the course of the current spending review.

Jim Mather: Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s budget was reduced to reflect the refocusing of the organisation as part of this government’s reform of the enterprise networks.

  Rather than having a negative impact on the economy, the reforms will enable it to maximise its contribution to economic recovery and growth by focusing more clearly on those activities likely to have the greatest economic impact on economic recovery and increased sustainable economic growth.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations ministers have received from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) about the impact that reductions in the HIE budget would have on the ability to support economic development in the Highlands and Islands.

Jim Mather: Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s budget was reduced to reflect the refocusing of the organisation as part of this government’s reform of the enterprise networks.

  While Highlands and Islands Enterprise has had regular dialogue with Scottish Government officials and ministers in the context of Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s operating plan, there have been no specific representations by Highlands and Islands Enterprise to ministers about the impact of reductions in the Highlands and Islands Enterprise budget.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how the reduction in Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s budget over the spending review will impact on the development of renewable energy projects associated with the Pentland Firth.

Jim Mather: Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s budget was reduced to reflect the refocusing of the organisation as part of this government’s reform of the enterprise networks.

  Rather than having a negative impact on the economy, the reforms will enable it to maximise its contribution to economic recovery and growth by focusing more clearly on those activities likely to have the greatest economic impact on economic recovery and increased sustainable economic growth.

  Highlands and Islands Enterprise continues to focus its interventions on selected account managed businesses and anticipate that many of these will benefit from opportunities arising from the Pentland Firth. The scale of the development of the Pentland Firth is such that the intervention of public funds will only be a small part of the total investment required. Highlands and Islands Enterprise is, therefore, prioritising its resources to ensure the most effective leverage of private funds.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how the reduction in Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s budget over the spending review will impact on the creation of replacement high quality jobs as Dounreay continues to decommission.

Jim Mather: Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s budget was reduced to reflect the refocusing of the organisation as part of this government’s reform of the enterprise networks.

  Rather than having a negative impact on the economy, the reforms will enable it to maximise its contribution to economic recovery and growth by focusing more clearly on those activities likely to have the greatest economic impact on economic recovery and increased sustainable economic growth.

  The Caithness and North Sutherland action plan, in which Highlands and Islands Enterprise is an active partner, is one such transformational project which focuses on the future of the area, post decommissioning.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, with reference to Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s operating plan, whether it will publish the GVA impacts that the transformational projects and programmes are expected to generate.

Jim Mather: : The Scottish Government has no plans to publish the GVA impacts attributable to the transformational projects identified within Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s operating plan for 2009-12. The publication of this information, when quantified, is an operational matter for Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE).

  I have written to HIE’s Chief Executive, Sandy Cumming, asking him to respond to you directly on this issue.

  Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive which indicators are used to assess the impact of the transformational projects referred to in Highland and Islands Enterprise’s operating plan on the targets set out in The Government Economic Strategy.

Jim Mather: : The setting of indicators to assess the impact of Highland and Island Enterprise’s transformational projects on targets set out in The Government Economic Strategy is an operational matter for Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE). However, HIE has advised that, given the complexity and varying timescales associated with these investments and given that some are deemed to be nationally as well as regionally significant, a range of indicators are used.

  I have written to HIE’s Chief Executive, Sandy Cumming, asking him to respond to you directly on this issue, providing further detail of these indicators.

Housing

John Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive who the members are of the working group on Investment Reform in Housing.

Alex Neil: Following its statement of 25 June about the way forward for investment reform, the Scottish Government is in the process of identifying working group members in conjunction with the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations and COSLA. Membership will be finalised before the first working group meeting which is expected to take place in September.

Justice

John Lamont (Roxburgh and Berwickshire) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people recalled from supervision or licence to custody were not returned to custody, broken down by local authority in each year between January 1999 and June 2009.

Kenny MacAskill: Under the provisions of the Prisoners and Criminal Proceedings (Scotland) Act 1993, determinate sentence prisoners may be released on licence between the half-way point and two-thirds point of sentence on the recommendation of the parole board. Such individuals are liable to be recalled to custody up to the expiry of their sentence. Life sentence prisoners who are released on life licence on the direction of the parole board are liable to recall to custody for the rest of their lives.

  Where an offender’s behaviour gives cause for concern, leading to a revocation of licence conditions, officials of the Criminal Justice Directorate issue the order for the recall to custody to the police in order that they take steps to apprehend and return the offender to custody. The local authority is not involved in the process of returning the individual to custody.

  While responsibility rests with the police to enforce the order, Criminal Justice Directorate continually monitors progress in relation to the enforcement of the order and liaises with the police until the individual is returned to custody.

  Our records indicate that there are presently 13 offenders in Scotland subject to a recall order who have not yet been returned to custody. The table below shows the number recalled in each year.

  Recalled Offenders Not Yet Returned to Custody by Year of Recall

  

1999 
1


2003 
2


2004 
2


2005 
2


2006 
1


2008 
1


2009 
4



  Source: Scottish Government Criminal Justice Directorate.

  Information on recalls to custody for offenders subject to a supervised release order is not held centrally.

  John Lamont (Roxburgh and Berwickshire) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people recalled from supervision or licence to custody were not returned to custody, broken down by police force in each year between January 1999 and June 2009.

Kenny MacAskill: For details of the number recalled in each year I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-25679 on 5 August 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

  There are currently 13 offenders in Scotland subject to a recall order who have not yet been returned to custody. The police forces involved were Strathclyde (seven cases), Lothian and Borders (two cases), Tayside (two cases), Dumfries and Galloway (one case) and Merseyside (one case). This information is provided at an aggregate level only due to the very small numbers and risks of disclosure.

  Information on recalls to custody for offenders subject to a supervised release order is not held centrally.

  John Lamont (Roxburgh and Berwickshire) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people recalled from supervision or licence to custody were not returned to custody, broken down by main crime or offence for which they were committed in each year between January 1999 and June 2009.

Kenny MacAskill: For details of the number recalled in each year I refer the member to the answer given to question S3W-25679 answered on 5 August 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

  There are currently 13 convicted prisoners in Scotland subject to a recall order who have not yet been returned to custody. Of these, seven were convicted for crimes of violence, five for drugs-related crimes and one for crimes of indecency. This information is provided at an aggregate level only due to the very small numbers and risks of disclosure.

  Information on recalls to custody for offenders subject to a supervised release order is not held centrally.

  Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many arrest warrants are currently outstanding, broken down by (a) category of offence and (b) police force area.

Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many arrest warrants were (a) issued and (b) successfully served in each of the last three years, broken down by (i) category of offence and (ii) police force area.

Kenny MacAskill: The information requested is not held centrally.

Justice

Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many offenders received a custodial sentence of six months or less in 2007-08, broken down by (a) main offence and (b) police force area.

Kenny MacAskill: The available information is given in the following table.

  Persons Given a Custodial Sentence of Six Months or Less, by Main Crime and Police Force Area, 2007-081

  

Main Crime or Offence
Central
Dumfries and Galloway
Fife
Grampian
Lothian and Borders


All crimes and offences
706
376
674
863
1,644


All crimes 
465
246
483
607
1,041


Non-sexual Crimes of Violence
 
 
 
 
 


Homicide
0
0
0
0
0


Serious assault and attempted murder2
4
1
2
5
9


Robbery 
5
1
4
10
11


Other 
0
1
0
3
6


Crimes of Indecency 
 
 
 
 
 


Rape and attempted rape
0
0
0
0
0


Indecent assault 
0
0
0
2
0


Lewd and indecent behaviour 
2
1
2
1
3


Other 
0
0
0
1
1


Crimes of Dishonesty 
 
 
 
 
 


Housebreaking 
39
21
45
58
110


Theft by opening a lockfast place 
11
12
22
33
39


Theft of/from a motor vehicle 
7
6
12
17
35


Shoplifting 
108
47
149
187
241


Other theft 
53
31
52
73
124


Fraud 
8
34
4
10
13


Other 
15
3
15
27
41


Fire-raising, Vandalism, etc 
 
 
 
 
 


Fire-raising 
1
0
1
4
5


Vandalism etc 
37
10
32
16
56


Other Crimes 
 
 
 
 
 


Crimes against public justice 
131
53
104
104
203


Handling an offensive weapon 
15
13
20
20
63


Drugs 
28
8
14
35
71


Other 
1
4
5
1
10


All Offences
241
130
191
256
603


Miscellaneous Offences 
 
 
 
 
 


Common assault 
101
45
80
119
218


Breach of the peace 
96
42
58
62
237


Drunkenness
0
0
0
0
0


Other 
9
9
4
9
35


Motor Vehicle Offences 
 
 
 
 
 


Dangerous and careless driving 
6
3
6
6
9


Drunk driving 
10
3
15
10
16


Unlawful use of vehicle 
19
28
28
49
88


Other 
0
0
0
1
0



  

Main Crime or Offence
Northern
Strathclyde
Tayside
Scotland


All crimes and offences
650
6,245
1,488
12,646


All crimes 
340
3,757
1,148
8,087


Non-sexual Crimes of Violence
 
 
 
 


Homicide
0
0
0
0


Serious assault and attempted murder2
4
29
9
63


Robbery 
0
48
6
85


Other 
4
20
9
43


Crimes of Indecency 
 
 
 
 


Rape and attempted rape
0
0
0
0


Indecent assault 
0
6
2
10


Lewd and indecent behaviour 
4
3
2
18


Other 
3
6
0
11


Crimes of Dishonesty 
 
 
 
 


Housebreaking 
18
249
85
625


Theft by opening a lockfast place 
3
145
41
306


Theft of/from a motor vehicle 
11
83
11
182


Shoplifting 
57
941
380
2,110


Other theft 
45
246
106
730


Fraud 
4
55
16
144


Other 
5
125
47
278


Fire-raising, Vandalism, etc 
 
 
 
 


Fire-raising 
0
4
4
19


Vandalism etc 
43
196
20
410


Other Crimes 
 
 
 
 


Crimes against public justice 
92
871
285
1,843


Handling an offensive weapon 
20
448
49
648


Drugs 
27
234
69
486


Other 
0
48
7
76


All offences
310
2,488
340
4,559


Miscellaneous Offences 
 
 
 
 


Common assault 
129
981
142
1,815


Breach of the peace 
135
997
114
1,741


Drunkenness
0
0
0
0


Other 
6
102
14
188


Motor Vehicle Offences 
 
 
 
 


Dangerous and careless driving 
4
65
6
105


Drunk driving 
21
83
21
179


Unlawful use of vehicle 
15
255
43
525


Other 
0
5
0
6



  Source: Scottish Government Court Proceedings database.

  Notes:

  1. As part of the analysis of the 2007-08 data, a change was made to the way in which the number of persons with a charge proved is calculated. These figures now exclude those who have been proceeded against for a breach of social work order, due to a change in recording practices for such crimes. More information is provided in the latest Criminal Proceedings in Scottish Courts Statistical Bulletin http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/04/27103325/0.

  2. In 2007-08 all of the charges in this crime group where a custodial sentence of six months or less was imposed related to serious assault rather than attempted murder.

Procurement

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it requires or encourages construction companies undertaking publicly funded contracts to achieve certification to ISO standards and, if so, whether it will detail the levels of certification required or sought.

Jim Mather: Decisions on the criteria used in public construction contracts to select contractors are taken on the basis of what is relevant and proportionate to individual project needs. Evidence of membership of recognised accreditation schemes, of which there are many, may form part of the consideration of the technical or professional ability of a contractor bidding for a job, but to set mandatory requirements for specific accreditation schemes could be open to challenge.

Renewable Energy

John Lamont (Roxburgh and Berwickshire) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish the notice from the Ministry of Defence that it intends to withdraw its objections to the Fallago Rig wind farm in Berwickshire.

Jim Mather: The withdrawal of objection of the Ministry of Defence and supporting evidence was issued to interested parties who made an appearance at the Fallago Rig public inquiry on 15 July 2009 and is also available on the Energy Consents and Deployment website at:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Business-Industry/Energy/Infrastructure/Energy-Consents/Whatsnew.

Scottish Investment Bank

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the aims and objectives of the Scottish Investment Bank will be.

Jim Mather: The overarching objective of the Scottish Investment Bank will be to provide, on a co-investment basis with the private sector, a sustainable source of equity and debt finance to Scottish based, growth potential SMEs.

Sectarianism

Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of recent comments by the Cabinet Secretary for Justice that appropriate action should be taken against anyone caught displaying flags likely to incite sectarian violence, how many offences of this nature have been (a) recorded by police and (b) prosecuted in each of the last 12 months, broken down by police force area.

Kenny MacAskill: This information is not held centrally.

  The Scottish Government does not hold individualised data on any crimes or offences recorded by the eight police forces in Scotland and as such does not hold information on the nature of the crime or the circumstances that led to the crime being committed. As such it is not possible to identify how incidents were recorded where flags inciting sectarian violence were being displayed.

  The Scottish Government Court Proceedings database holds records on offences where a religious aggravator has been recorded. These aggravators are not broken down to a level where flags inciting sectarian violence were being displayed could be identified from other types of incitement.

  Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of recent comments by the Cabinet Secretary for Justice that appropriate action should be taken against anyone caught displaying flags likely to incite sectarian violence, what evidence it has of the scale of the problem.

Kenny MacAskill: This information is not held centrally.

  The Scottish Government has made it clear that there is no place in modern Scotland for the sectarian bigotry which has blighted the lives of so many of our people. The Scottish Government believes that sectarianism continues to be a problem faced by Scottish society, but we are determined to tackle this societal ill and continue to promote a range of initiatives to encourage mutual respect and understanding between our diverse communities.

  On the 25 June 2009, the First Minister announced that the Scottish Government will present a coordinated national approach to tackling sectarianism in Scotland to the parliament in October, drawing together the different strands of existing activity that are already helping our communities to overcome this long-standing issue.

  I know that the Scottish Police Service and its partner agencies are committed to tackling such behaviour whenever and wherever it is encountered.

Voluntary Sector

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how community and voluntary groups are currently funded.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how community and voluntary groups will be funded after April 2011.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with community and voluntary groups with regard to the proposed changes to their (a) structure and (b) funding.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with community planning partnerships with regard to proposed changes to the funding and structure of community and voluntary groups.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has consulted community and voluntary groups about the Single Interface Programme and, if so, how any responses influenced the formation of the programme.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the level of funding allocated to community voluntary groups will decrease or increase after April 2011 as a result of the Single Interface Programme.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Single Interface Programme for community and voluntary groups will comprise one organisation or a grouping of organisations.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive for what reason it believes that a Single Interface Programme for community and voluntary groups is preferable to the current system.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what research it has done or evidence it has to support the idea that a single interface programme for community and voluntary groups is preferable to the current system.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what estimate it has made of the organisational expenditure savings that will be made by the introduction of a single interface programme for community and voluntary groups.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the prospect of making organisational expenditure savings is a motivation for introducing a single interface programme for community and voluntary groups.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what its response is to concerns that regional or local coordination of voluntary activities could be more effective than a single interface programme.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding is given to community and voluntary groups for (a) organisation and staffing and (b) projects.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding will be given to community and voluntary groups for (a) organisation and staffing and (b) projects from April 2011.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how individual projects will be organised and coordinated under the proposed Single Interface Programme for community and voluntary groups.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how it will ensure that the needs of each community are met under the proposed Single Interface Programme for community and voluntary groups.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how the level of funding for each community and voluntary project will be determined under the Single Interface Programme for community and voluntary groups.

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has consulted community planning partnerships about the Single Interface Programme and, if so, how any responses influenced the formation of the programme.

Jim Mather: We believe that the third sector has a major contribution to make in the design and delivery of single outcome agreements. Since March 2008, across Scotland community planning partnerships and the third sector locally have been devising new arrangements, known as single interfaces, which cover four key functions: support for voluntary organisations, volunteering, and social enterprise and building connections between the community planning partnership and the sector.

  Already, such interface arrangements exist in Edinburgh, East Lothian, East Renfrewshire, Falkirk, Orkney, Perth and Kinross, Shetland, West Dunbartonshire, West Lothian and, shortly, Moray. These are intermediary support and liaison bodies which are not directly involved in the delivery of front line services nor the funding of third sector organisations. The interface work has no effect on the funding of third sector bodies which deliver the kinds of service most commonly funded by local authorities or the NHS.

  The shaping of each interface is entirely a matter for the community planning partnership and the third sector in each area and we are now funding direct those in the pilot group. We expect that the majority of the 32 community planning areas will have single interfaces in place by March 2010.

  The Third Sector Task Group, made up of senior figures from COSLA, the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives, Scottish Council of Voluntary Organisations and the Scottish Government, receives regular reports on the progress of development of the interfaces.

  Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to carry out a review of voluntary sector organisations, in particular in the Highlands and Islands.

Jim Mather: We have no plans to carry out a review of voluntary organisations, in the Highlands and Islands or elsewhere.

  Across the country third sector intermediary organisations are considering how best to engage with the community planning partnership for their area in a process which should lead to single interfaces between the third sector and the community planning partnership. The goal is for the third sector to be able to make a strong contribution to the development of the single outcome agreement and to advise on the delivery of the agreed outcomes.

  This is a positive process with nine interfaces already in place and working towards these objectives. We believe that the majority of areas will have such arrangements in place by March 2010.